Something Good
by hosters
Summary: What happens when Wanda goes back to her home in Washington, DC? What will happen when a certain fellow catches her eye? Will she have feelings for him or find someone else? Most importantly, will he like her back? AU! No souls, all human! DIsclaimer: I do not own The Host.
1. Chapter 1

**Hope you guys enjoy this AU!**

-_hosters_

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_Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the Washington National Airport. Please gather all of your belonging and watch your step as you exit. Have a good day in Washington, D.C!_

I gathered all of my stuff and exited. Home sweet home.

I was suddenly blinded by memories. Memories of home.

Some from when Mel, Jamie, and I had to push the car because my dad was too stubborn to get gas at the gas station twenty miles back since it was too dirty. Some from prom – I went alone of course – and from graduation in high school. Some of just Mel, Jamie, and I having fun.

I hadn't realized that I'd stopped walking completely until my phone rang in my purse. I answered it.

"Hello?" I said.

_Hey Wanda! Are you here yet? _Melanie squealed.

"Just got here, Mel. I'll get a rental car and I'll be there in an hour." I said. But of course, I knew that wouldn't happen.

_Nonsense! I'll get the limo to pick you up! _Mel said. I groaned.

Did I forget to mention that she's married to the president? I don't mean the president of a hedge fund company. I mean the _actual _president. The big dog, the man on top. Yes, my sister was married to President Howe.

Jared, Mel, and I went to high school together. She had a super huge crush on him since the day we met - had one on him myself, but that didn't last long – and they hit it off. Turns out he liked her too. A lot.

We went to Harvard together, not daring to go to separate colleges. One day, Jared said he wanted to run for president. Mel and I laughed, but when we saw he was serious, we immediately shut up. We questioned him on why he wanted to become president, and he said it was just a feeling in his gut. We said it would never work out, but somehow in this crazy messed up world it did.

"But – " I tried to say but was interrupted by Mel.

_Shush. It'll be there in ten minutes. See ya! _Mel said and hung up. I sighed.

I walked outside and sat on an empty bench far away from other people. It felt nice to be isolated. That didn't last long, though.

I felt someone tap my shoulder. I turned around to see a tall man, probably six feet, with black inky hair and dazzling blue eyes. He was smiling. Perfect pearly whites were showing.

"Do you mind if I sit here?" he asked. His voice was so smooth. _Must be one of those rich lawyers around here, _I thought.

"No, not at all," I replied. I moved my stuff and he sat down.

"I'm Ian O'Shea by the way," he said while sticking his hand out. "And you are?"

I took his hand. "Wanda Stryder."

I saw the limo pull up. I groaned. People were already staring at it.

"My ride is here. Bye!" I said while pushing through the crowd to get to it. Walter was there to open the door of course.

"Good morning, Miss Wanda," he said while tipping his hat. I smiled.

"Good morning, Walter," I said while curtseying. He chuckled and I climbed in the car.

The ride was pretty short. Walter and I chatted a little. We talked about his wife, Gladys, my trip to Arizona that I just came back from, and other miscellaneous things that popped into our heads. We pulled up in the huge driveway. Melanie was already waiting there.

"Wanda!" Mel said while opening the car door for me and pulling me out. She hugged me.

"Hey Mel! How's Jamie doing?" I asked. Jamie had recently gotten an internship at a computer company. Boy, did he love technology.

"He called me before I came out here. He said he's fine and to say hi to you."

"Let's get inside." I said. The sun was already beating down on us, even though we were standing there for five minutes. She agreed and we walked in.

We passed by Trudy, Heidi, and Lily on our way to the oval office. They were also one of my friends that I'd made here. They smiled and waved and I returned the gesture.

We finally got there. The door was closed so he probably didn't know we were here. Mel opened it. Jared sat there, leaning forward and resting his head on his hand while filling out paperwork.

"Jared Howe, you better give me a hug" I said loudly. He looked up and gasped. I'm so glad Mel didn't tell him I was coming. He got up quickly and rushed over to me. He hugged me in one of his bone – crushing hugs.

"Jared… Can't… Breathe…" I croaked. He immediately loosened up.

"It's so good to see you, Wanda!" he crowed.

"How's life?" I asked.

"I have to fill out paperwork, I can't go outside anymore, and I have Congress breathing down my back. How are you doing?" he said with a hint of playfulness in his tone.

"Nothing as exciting as _that, _but I did get a job as a teacher at Georgetown." I said.

"That's great Wanda! We should – "

"Excuse me, Mr. President?" his assistant Brandt said while peering in to the room. Jared narrowed his eyes at him.

"What?" he asked, clearly annoyed.

"Umm… Mr. O'Shea is here to see you," Brandt stammered and looked at the ground. O'Shea… why does that sound familiar?

"Oh," Jared's tone got chirpy again. "Send him in please."

Brandt ran off to get this Mr. O'Shea. My mind was wrapped around why his name sounded so familiar. Just then, a very, _very _familiar man walked in.

Black hair, tall, and those sparkling sapphire eyes. My eyes widened in shock.

He saw me and his own eyes widened. Then he smiled. Crest – approved teeth were showing.

"Why hello there, Wanda," he said.

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**How was that so far? Please review and tell me what you think!**

-_hosters_


	2. Chapter 2

I was still wide eyed. Why was he here? How did he get here? How does he know Jared? All these questions flowed in my head.

"Ian, how do you know Wanda?" Mel asked a little creeped out.

"Met her at the airport."

"Hi…" I said awkwardly. I twiddled my thumbs.

"Why don't we all go out for lunch?" Jared suggests.

"Are you sure you can? I'm pretty sure if you take one step out there the media will be right there in your face in a split second." I stated.

Everyone chuckled. "Good point," Jared said.

"How 'bout we just eat here? I'll ask Trudy, Heidi, and Lily to cook something," Mel suggested.

"Great idea, Mel!" Jared said and kissed her cheek.

"I'll be right back! Wanda, why don't you tell them about the trip you were just on?" Mel said while wiggling her eyebrows. I glared at her. She smiled innocently. She was far from innocent.

"I don't know. I'm pretty sure they don't want to hear about it…" I said sheepishly.

"I'd love to, Wanda. I'm pretty sure Ian can say the same thing," Jared assured me. Ian nodded his head and offered me a warm smile. I took a deep breath.

"I just got back from Arizona. I was searching the caves there. I like to travel so much that my team came up with a nickname for me. Wanderer. It kinda suits me." I said.

"That's fascinating, Wanda," Ian marveled. "When I met you, I just got back from Florida. I was visiting my parents there. Not as exciting as visiting caves, though."

"Lunch is ready!" Mel called. _Thank god! _I thought.

We all made it to the humongous dining hall. It was decorated with breathtaking paintings and antique décor. It was the perfect place. I sat next to Mel, thank heavens for that, and Ian pulled my chair out. So did Jared to Melanie. _Such gentlemen… _

Mel and I sat and they pushed it in. They sat on the opposite side of the large table so that they were facing us. Wes and Aaron, the waiters, put our meals in front of us. Everyone had the same thing: beef stew. Then, Wes put our drinks on the table. Everyone else got red wine, however, I didn't get one. I was going to tell them, but Aaron put a glass in front of me. It had a bendy straw and I raised one brow at her. She was holding back laughs. Jared looked at me and the glass and smiled. I glared at them.

"Really guys?" I asked.

"Don't look at me! Mel told them what to make!" Jared defended himself. I narrowed my eyes at Melanie. She erupted in fits of laughter.

"Mel, I thought I told you this before. I'm. Not. Drinking. This." I pointed out. She really wanted to make my face as red as a tomato, although I'm pretty sure it already was.

"Come on, Wanda! It's been forever!" She urged. Ian cleared his throat.

"What exactly is in the cup?" he questioned. Jared, Mel, and I looked at each other. The story behind it wasn't that embarrassing, unless you went into great detail like they always did.

"We were in college. Wanda and I decided to throw a part for Jared's birthday. I was in charge of the cake and decorations. Wanda was in charge of the drinks and the invitations. The night before the party, Wanda stayed up late to study for her chemistry test. She totally forgot to make the drinks. About thirty minutes before the party she made the drinks. She was in such a rush, she took every bottle of alcohol and added a little bit of each in it. Then she added a bunch of grenadine in there. Finally, she put them in the cups with the bendy straws we had." Mel explained.

"They loved it, though they were so drunk that I found out a few things that I never knew before," Wanda said while glancing back and forth between Jared and Melanie. They were both blushing. "That scarred me for life, guys." I winced at the memory.

**We were all dancing around in the dorm. I was glad everyone liked the drink. People started stumbling around. I chuckled. Mel came up to me.**

**"****Hey Wanda! Wassup with you?" she asked while slurring a little bit on her words.**

**"****How much of that punch did you drink?" I asked.**

**"****Don't know. Mebbe eight cups." She said.**

**"****What do you need, Mel?" I asked her. She came here for a reason.**

**"****I have a confession to make," she said suddenly. "I'm pregnant."**

**I basically spit out my drink. I gaped at her. Was she serious? Or was she just drunk? Why was she even drinking if she was pregnant? Didn't she know the first thing when it comes to pregnancies?**

**"****Who's the father?" I shrieked. "Why are you drinking then?"**

**"****Jared," she mumbled.**

**Did she just say Jared? She and Jared were together? Most of all sleeping together? I was so gonna kill them.**

**"****JARED!" I screamed. "GET YOUR FAT ASS OVER HERE. NOW!"**

**He came over, almost slipping on the punch I spit out. "Whadya need?" he slurred.**

**"****YOU'RE WITH MEL?!" I shouted. "AND ****_SLEEPING _****WITH HER?!"**

**"****Yup. Got a problem with that?" he said shamelessly. That son of a bitch. He knocked up Melanie. My sister.**

**"****YOU BET YOUR FREAKIN' ASS I DO! YOU KNOCKED UP MY SISTER!" I screeched.**

**"****We're gonna have a baby?" he asked Mel. She nodded happily. He picked her up and kissed her deeply. I cleared my throat.**

**"****When did this start?" I asked with a calmer voice. Just keep calm, Wanda. Keep calm. There's a reasonable explanation for all this.**

**"****In high school," Mel replied.** **I just about blew my top right there. I'm fairly certain that steam was coming out of my ears. They've been together for about five freakin' years and didn't dare to tell me?! I was hurt.**

**"****HIGH SCHOOL?!" I shouted. "YOU'VE BEEN TOGETHER SINCE HIGH SCHOOL AND YOU NEVER TOLD ME? WHAT KIND OF FRIENDS ARE YOU?" I questioned.**

**"****We didn't want you getting mad at us." Jared said. Melanie collapsed. She was so drunk, she lost consciousness. Jared carried her to the couch and he fell asleep there. They were ****_so _****gonna have to explain themselves when they woke up and were sober.**

"What happened?" Ian asked curiously. This snapped me out of that disturbing memory.

"Long story short. They were drunk. They were sleeping together. Mel confessed to me that she was pregnant. I freaked and asked her who the father was. She said it was Jared. I called him over and asked him to explain himself. He was too drunk to form a coherent sentence. The next morning I asked them about it and they didn't know a thing I was talking about, however, Mel and Jared did confess that they've been together since high school and that Mel was pregnant. I freaked again but not as much as I did the first time." I explained to him.

"It was a false positive, Wanda. We were fine." Mel argued.

"What made it positive in the first place, Mel?" I shot back at her. That made her silent.

"Just drink it," Mel said, clearly exasperated.

"Fine," I gave in. I took a sip. It tasted like heaven. I sighed happily. "Just as good as I remember it."

They laughed. This was a nice lunch.

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Kinda short I know. Please review and tell me what you think!

-_hosters_


	3. Chapter 3

The rest of the day was spent chatting. We talked a little bit about my trip to the caves, but mostly about old times.

"Remember when Jared got so embarrassed that he was all red?" Mel asked. I laughed.

"Of course! How could I forget?" I said playfully.

"What did you do to make Jared a living tomato?" Ian asked curiously. Jared's cheeks were a tad pink.

"I walked into the wrong locker room," he mumbled. Ian boomed.

"It was your fault you didn't read the sign. He walked in on all of us changing."

Everyone laughed again.

"Guess I gotta go now. I need to check into a hotel." I said hoping the Mel wouldn't oppose, though she probably would. What's the worse she could do? Offer me a room in the White House?

"No chance in hell that's happening, Wanda. You can stay here." Mel offered. Of course she did.

"Fine," I groaned. She squealed and hugged me.

"It's good to have you back, sis," she whispered.

"Good to have you back too, Mel," I whispered back to her.

I took my luggage to one of the guest rooms. I told Mel to give me the smallest one they had, but of course she completely ignored me and gave me the biggest one. I sighed.

Mel left me in the hall. I was about to open my door, but a hand on my shoulder stopped me. It felt strange there, but oddly, at the same time… nice.

I turned around and was not that surprised that Ian O'Shea was standing behind me. He offered me one of his amazing smiles and I looked down.

"What do you need, Ian?" I asked. His name rolled easily off my tongue and he smiled at that.

"Do you wanna grab a coffee together tomorrow? I know this place near here that's really good." He asked. I was stunned. _He _was asking _me _to get a coffee with him? Why would he ask me even?

"But why are you asking me? Of all people? Wouldn't you ask Jared?"

He pursed his lips, deep in thought. There was something about this O'Shea that surprised me. Wouldn't he ask his best friend to grab a coffee with him? Why would he ask someone that he's known for about three hours?

"You're interesting, and I'd like to get to know you better, seeing that we're going to be meeting more," he said. Meeting _more? _What did he mean by that?

"Why?" I questioned. I was sure he and Jared were close friends. They man – hugged each other and knew everything about the other.

"Don't you ever check up on Jared?" He asked, surprised.

"Well… no," I said sheepishly, rubbing my right hand on my left arm in embarrassment. "I only saw the final results, when Jared won."

"That would explain it," he muttered. "I'm the vice – president."

Say what now?

"How did you and Jared even meet?"

"I'll answer that at coffee tomorrow, that is, if you _want _to," he said, making sure to state that I was not obliged to.

"I'd love to," I replied. His face lit up.

"Great! You said you're a teacher at Georgetown, right?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"My cousin goes there. I can pick you up at four o'clock."

"No need. I can drive myself."

"Haven't you forgot you don't even _have _a car?"

"Oh, right."

He was right. I didn't have a car. I was _going _to get one but stubborn Mel insisted that I had to take the limo here. I groaned internally.

"That would be great if you could," I replied to Ian.

"See you tomorrow, Wanda," he said over his shoulder as he walked away.

I walked into the room and stuffed my things in the dresser, took a shower, and changed. I plopped down on the bed. _Why would he ask me? _That thought was floating in my mind as I slipped into unconsciousness.

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**Sorry for the short chapter. Please review and tell me what you think! :)**

-_hosters_


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